Longitudinally expandible shoe tree with adjusting means



May 23, 1961 D. MACKAY 2,984,849

LONGITUDINALLY EXPANDIBLE SHOE TREE WITH ADJUSTING MEANS Filed Oct. 29, 1958 INVENTOR. DONALD MACKAY ATTORNEYS United States Patent LONGITUDINALLY EXPANDIBLE SHOE TREE WITH ADJUSTING MEANS Donald Mackay, 30-16 30th Drive, Douglaston, N.Y.

Filed Oct. 29, 1958, Ser. No. 770,429

2 Claims. (Cl. 12117.4)

The invention relates to a shoe tree and particularly a shoe tree which hinges approximately at its mid point for insertion in a shoe which hinge is concealed or not visible as viewed from the top. The shoe tree is preferably adjustable lengthwise to accommodate different sizes of shoes. The construction is particularly suited for shoe trees made of wood but they may be made of other materials.

It is an object of the invention to construct a shoe tree having a concealed hinge, that is, a hinge which is not visible when looking down on the top.

Another object of the invention is to construct a shoe tree with a concealed hinge which also is adjustable.

Another object of the invention is to construct a shoe tree having a concealed hinge and which hinge secures the two members or parts of the shoe tree together firmly and with freedom from lateral looseness.

Other objects of the invention will be more apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing illustrating a preferred embodiment thereof in which:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of the shoe tree taken on line 11 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 2 is a bottom View of the shoe tree showing the hinge.

The shoe tree includes two members namely a fore part or toe member or part and a hinged heel member or part 11. The heel member is recessed or hollowed out as shown which provides clearance to enable the heel member to hinge upwardly for insertion in a shoe after which it is pressed or hinged downwardly to engage the heel of the shoe and stretch or shape the shoe. The hollowed out portion of the heel member may be shaped to provide a forwardly extending finger hook as well, to be used in pulling the heel member upwardly when removing the shoe tree from a shoe.

The fore part or toe member has a hinge slot 14 therein extending to the parting or abutting surface 15 and extending from the bottom surface 19 of the member. The hinge slot has side faces 14a. There is a layer of mate rial remaining at the top forming a cover 18 so that the slot is invisible or concealed from the top of or looking down upon the shoe tree. The cover is relatively thin since a slot of substantial depth is desirable. This slot provides at least one stop surface although two are shown namely the top surface 16 of the slot and the front surface or end 17 of the slot.

A hinge member 20 is hinged to one member and attached to the other. In the construction illustrated, the hinge is carried by the fore part or toe member. Into the slot 14 there is fitted a hinge member 20 which is hinged to the toe member by a ln'nge or hinge pin 21 located relatively closely -to the top surface of the slot. This hinge pin may conveniently be a finishing nail passing through a hole drilled in the hinge member from the side to the slot. The finishing nail also passes through a hinge hole 22 in the hinge member to provide a pivot therefore and is hammered into the wood on the other I side of the hinge member to retain or anchor the hinge or hinge pin and the hinge member on the toe member. The hinge member has a flat stop surface 23 at the end thereof adjacent the hinge which abuts the end 17 of the slot in flat or aligned position of the heel member with respect to the toe member and it may also have a top surface 24 which engages the stop or top surface of the slot 16. One stop surface is sufficient although two provides a firmer stop to limit the pivotal movement of the hinge member to a horizontal or substantially horizontal position. The hinge member preferably carries a clearance slot 25 so that the heel member may hinge fully to an upward position without interference from the thin cover 18 for the slot. The sides of the hinge member fit snugly or closely into the slot 14 yet has freedom for easy pivotal movement. It is desirable that the hinge member has no lateral play in the slot or on the hinge pin or at most very slight lateral play.

The heel member 11 has a slot 28 provided therein to receive the hinge member which slot extends to the parting or abutting surface 29 and also extends through to the bottom of the heel member and with a thin top cover 26. This slot has side faces 28a and is wide enough to freely receive the hinge member yet is sung enough to permit no lateral shake or play of the hinge member in the slot or at most very little play. The hinge member carries an adjusting screw 30 projecting rearwardly therefrom and it may be a separate screw suitably attached to the hinge member or may be integral therewith. This adjusting screw projects through a hole 31 in the heel member. Spaced from the end of the slot is a nut slot 32 which cuts across the screw hole 31. An adjusting nut 33 is threaded onto the adjusting screw 31 and is retained in the nut slot. Its outer periphery may be knurled to aid in turning the same for adjustment. The heel member is, therefore, retained on the hinge member solely through the adjusting screw and adjusting nut and the hole provided for the adjusting screw in the heel member gives additional support to that provided by the hinge member fitting in the slot 28. The adjusting means, therefore, serves a double function in that it provides the adjustment and also provides the means for attaching or securing the heel member on the hinge member. With the hinge member fitting snugly into the slot 28 and engaging the side faces of the slot without clearance or play but with freedom for adjustment, the member is retained against lateral shake or displacement with respect to the fore part or toe member. At the nut slot the heel member may be grooved so that the adjusting nut is accessible to be turned but does not project below the contour bottom surface of the heel member. The nut slot with the screw hole and adjusting screw provide one way of rotatably mounting the nut for adjustment and for securing the hinge member to the heel member.

By turning the adjusting nut, the heel member may be adjusted towards or away from the fore part or toe member with the abutting surfaces 15 and 29 being in contact at the minimum size and being spaced upon adjustment to increase the length of the shoe tree for larger sizes of shoes. It is convenient to provide an adjustment for four full shoe sizes although, it is clear that by lengthening the hinge member, its slot 28 in the heel member and the adjusting screw, a wider range of adjustment for more shoe sizes may be accommodated. The heel member 11 is assembled onto the hinge merely by placing the adjusting nut 33 in the nut slot 32, inserting hinge member in the slot 28 and projecting the adjusting screw 30 into the hole 31. Turning of the adjusting nut will thread the same onto the adjusting screw and draw the toe member towards the heel member. When the shoe tree is adjusted to its minimum size the hinge is completely invisible from the top of the shoe tree. Even when adjusted to larger sizes only a small portion of the hinge member 20 is visible between the abutting faces of the toe member and heel member. This makesanattractive shoe tree.

i The shoe tree hinge is constructed such that the hinge pin may be carried by the'heel member if desired or a reversal of mounting. Usually, however, the toe member is substantially hollowed out to reduce weight and permit air to get to the sole of the shoe when the tree is mounted therein so that in order to provide anchorage for the hinge member some reduction in the hollowing out would be necessary. The more desirable construction is that illustrated.

This invention is presented to fill a need for improvements in a shoe tree. It is understood that various modifications in structure, as well as changes in mode of operation, assemb1y,'and manner of use, may and often do occur to those skilled in the art, especially after benefiting from the teachings of an invention. This disclosure illustrates the preferred means of embodying the invention in useful form.

What is claimed is:

1. A hinged shoe tree comprising a pair of shoe tree members including a toe member having a bottom surface and an abutting face and a heel member having a bottom surface and an abutting face, each member having a hinge slot extending solely from the bottom surface and the abutting face to provide a top cover for each hinge slot, the hinge slots having side faces, a hinge member fitting into the slots, a hinge pin carried by the toe member below the top cover and adjacent the abutting end thereof and passing through the hinge member to hingedly mount the hinge member, adjustable means carried by the heel member below the cover and securing the hinge member to the heel member, the hinge member having an end extending towards the toe from the hinge pin and a top surface, and the slot in the toe member having a top surface engaged by the top surface of the hinge member when the toe member and heel member are in alignment.

2. A hinge shoe tree as in claim 1 in which the means securing the hinge member to its shoe tree member includes an adjusting screw having one end secured to and extending from the end of the hinge member, the heel member having a screw hole extending from the end of its slot of a diameter slightly greater than the screw, the heel member having a nut slot extending solely from the bottom surface and spaced from the end of the hinge slot and intersecting the screw hole, and an adjusting nut on the adjusting screw andwithin the nut slot.

References Cited in ,the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS France Aug. 22, 1923 

